Tying Ends
by Endles
Summary: After all is said and done, you can only try again. Red returns to Pallet to make peace with his past and the people he left behind. Red/Green friendship or pre-slash, however you want to view it.


**Tying Ends**

i.

Oddly enough, the first place he finds himself after coming down is at the dentist. Mrs. Blanche had taken two glances at him outside her office before dragging him in and sitting him down on the worn-out chair he still vaguely remembers from his childhood. He hasn't been in Pallet for over three years, much less so at the dentist—he guesses he must've missed all of his appointments for the past five years and the woman, checking his files from the computer, tells him as much with her huffy voice.

"For Mew's sake, Red," she grumbles, pushing him down along with the chair, digging up instruments to use at a near frantic pace. "Have you any idea how much trouble you've cause your mother? Poor Delia has been turning down the invitation letters to appointment after appointment for you… always saying that 'no news is good news', hah! I'd like to believe it if I didn't know any better!"

He listens dutifully as Mrs. Blanche pokes around his mouth with something, frowning deeply at what she sees there. "Do you even own a toothbrush?" she asks sourly and when he tries to mumble that yes, in fact, he does and hasn't even been neglecting it, she shushes him. "No talking when I'm working, remember? Although I guess it isn't a surprise you'd forgotten… What have you even been doing? Besides worrying your mother sick…"

She shakes her head, and taps something onto the computer. "Do you need anesthetics? If you ask me, it's the same pain anyway, but with them you'll have a strange feeling in your mouth for at least four hours afterwards."

"No," he mutters simply and she stops typing, throwing him a peculiar look over his shoulder. "I hate feeling numb."

"Guess you do." She nods more to herself than anything. "Well then, try to keep your mouth open as wide as you can… definitely no talking, tongue in check."

Red doesn't need to be told that, honestly. He's spent most part of the past years alone in the company of his pokémon, who, though all very dear to him, don't talk much at all. He has learned to be silent, even more so than he was as a child. Now, back in the midst of the people he'd left behind, he realizes that he will have to learn to speak again.

He was eleven years old when he started his journey from the same village he has now returned to, a boy without a father looking for his place in the world. He was eleven years old and full of hopes and dreams so easy to be crushed in the harsh reality of the world. Standing at the podium at Indigo Plateau he'd felt himself smaller than the child that had left his home on his eleventh birthday.

After the championship victory he just left the league to mind its own business. He travelled to the Sevii Islands with Leaf, hoping to find a new adventure there. Leaf certainly found a spark when Celio sent them on a quest to find rare gem stones for his unfinished device, telling them stories of the regions they could contact once it was ready. Almost as soon as it was done, she picked up her few belongings and got on a ferry to Hoenn.

Red spent quite some time on the islands, traveling here and there with Pikachu by his side. Somewhere along the lines he found the last active Team Rocket hideout where one of the grunts told him the tale of Giovanni's life, his dreams, his goals and what most stuck in Red's memory, his son. It all seemed so pointless to him.

He returned to Pallet after that for some time. Green was there too, kicking the stones in his garden and wasting away his days when Red plopped down on the old swing. A lot had been said, and even more unsaid between them, but in that moment they had been on the same line. Two boys with nothing secure in their lives, but the creatures that stuck by them through wind and storm.

"I'm not sure where to go from here," Green had confessed that night, among other things. "They offered me the position as Viridian's gym leader, but it's like a pity job for the fallen heroes. I don't want that."

"But you're still going to accept," Red had said, not a question, because even if they'd spent most of their living years as rivals he _knew_ Green, as well as Green knew him.

"Yeah, well," the boy had mused, "it's either that or working for gramps."

Red understood. They'd stared at the sky until sunrise, two forgotten champions on Pallet's fields, two not quite friends who contrary to common belief had nothing to lose anymore.

Green had been the one who had asked the question, the one that mattered.

"What are you going to do?"

Red hadn't known the answer.

So he'd travelled some more, travelled until every crook of Kanto was burnt into his memory and he could've walked the road from Saffron to Vermilion with his eyes closed. At some point he dropped completely off the radar, sending no note of his whereabouts to anyone—and yet, Green's letters always reached him.

If one could even talk about the notes he sent as letters, that is. They often came at evening, carried by the new gym leader's Pidgeot. Red suspected that his own pokémon might be in alliance with the bird, leaving trails for its sharp eyes to follow, but he let it slip. It was nice to read the scribbles before bed.

_Met some strange kid today. Said he was from Sinnoh, wasn't much of a challenge. Guess it's the price of being the (second) best._

_- Green_

_Turns out pokémon lay eggs, who knew?_

_- Green_

_Leaf says hi. She's going to Unova next, something about fashion and shit. Didn't really get a half of what she said, but it's cool, I guess. She has a boyfriend._

_- Green_

The letters were the only constant in his life, even if they came at random times. They were the only touch to his past and he clung onto it like his life depended on it. The last of them came when he was standing at the root of Mt. Silver in the early summer breeze.

_When he beats you, come on home._

_- Green_

He met a boy with golden eyes and a Typhlosion right before the cave's entrance. He smiled at Red and asked if they could climb to the peak together. He had no reason to decline.

The boy was really talkative, cheerful, talking about his travels and life even if Red rarely commented on anything. He didn't seem to mind all that much, he merely kept babbling, answering his own questions and seeming content with just that. When they finally climbed out of the cave and into the wind though, he fell silent. The breeze blew half melted snow to their faces and Red was honestly freezing, but it didn't matter.

The whole world was spread out below them. The boy took a shaky breath.

"Wow," he said, quietly. "This is… just—there are no words."

Red had to agree.

"I can see my home town from here… and look, that's gotta be Viridian City."

And down, behind the slope, barely hidden from view was Pallet. Red smiled.

The boy seemed nervous. "Hey, um… you're Red, aren't ya? I've heard a lot about you, I even met your mother. So…"

"You want a battle," Red said calmly. He had known it was coming.

In the end, he lost the battle at the mountain's peak, just like Green had envisioned. Gold, as he learned was the boy's name, went his own way to Johto and Red began his journey back home, to Pallet. That was more or less how he found himself at Mrs. Blanche's reception.

He shifts in the chair and Mrs. Blanche burrows her brows. "You can consider yourself lucky, only a few more months and there would've been no free dental care for you. It's all because little Miss Peggy Lane had to cancel her appointment, otherwise we wouldn't have had a single free spot until next September and by then it would've been too late."

They both remain silent until she's finished with his fillings.

"So, how does it feel? Not too sharp?"

Red merely shakes his head. Mrs. Blanche sighs.

"Really now Red…" she says, offering him a weary smile. "Whatever took you so long?"

"I was searching for something," he says.

"Well," she asks and offers him a package of chewing gums, "did you find it?"

He smiles a bit. "Maybe."

ii.

He expects a nervous breakdown really, crying and wailing and pulling him into an embrace with the threats of never letting him go again, ever. Instead he gets an empty look from a worn-out woman who just steps out of the way to let him in as a wordless welcome. Outside the rain pours hard against the roof, a steady drumming that fills the silence. Delia Pavot crosses her ankles and suppresses a sigh, staring at the wall right past her son's head. For once in his life Red wants to tell her everything, something, _anything_, but sincerely doesn't know what to say.

"Your tea is getting cold, Poppy," she says and how would she know when she hasn't even once glanced down during the past fifteen minutes. Red picks the cup up (already cool to touch) and wonders why mothers will insist on using stupid pet names even when they haven't seen their children in many years, though their situation hardly is a common one. Not a single boy wants to be named after a flower, but if he's being honest Red finds odd comfort in it. To be a symbol of sleep, peace, calm, even death… it's better than being attached to passion, love and hate. Green often laughs at him—or at least he used to.

Delia shifts in her chair. Red mimics the action, taking a sip of the cold tea. He's used to it.

"So…" his mother trails.

"So," he repeats and gets a fierce glare in return. It's progress.

"Now, I know I haven't been able to be there for you always," Delia starts voice bristling under the calm tone, "but don't you think this has been a bit too much?"

He turns his eyes downward. Under the table Pikachu curls its tail around his left foot, for comfort. There isn't anything he _can _say even if he wants to spill out all the words in the world, because none of them would be enough to explain his actions. Delia's gaze is usually brown and warm like his, but now it's steeled and betrayed and so harsh that he doesn't dare to look her in the eye.

"Have you any idea—no, that's not right," she starts and bites her lip, to calm herself, Red knows. She is his mother after all. "When we said that we would try to make it work, that we would try to make by and try to be there for each other no matter the distance, did you mean any of that?"

She's talking about dad, of course, because everything in their lives is somehow connected to the forever absent man. Because of him Delia was forced work double shifts to support herself and Red, leaving Red all by himself most of the time as a child. Because of him Red chose to leave on a journey when he was eleven, even if he wasn't all that interested in pokémon back then. Because of him neither of them never truly understood what 'family' meant.

Saying sorry now was meaningless, just like it had been meaningless when she had tried apologizing to Red right before he'd left the last time. Still, he almost says _"I'm sorry"_ even if he knows it to be pointless.

"I don't know," he says instead, still afraid to look up and face the disappointment and utter heartbreak that he's bound to find written on her face. "But I do now. I mean it."

He can hear the shaky breath she lets out.

"Oh, goddamnit Poppy…" she whispers, tears in her voice and he just has to look up, alarmed, because even if he'd kind of expected it, he's never seen his mother cry. "I'm just so angry about you leaving and so, so bitter but…" She sobs into her hands and Red stares unable to do or say anything. "I'm still your mother," she holds out her hand, wet from her tears and he takes it, clenches tight with all the words he can't get out, "and you're still my son. I'm so glad, _so relieved _that you're back home safely."

"We'll get through," Red says quietly, repeating the words he can still remember her saying on a particularly sunny august evening, 11 years ago, "and it'll all be okay."

Through her sadness she smiles.

iii.

Despite having heard things about Leaf's life from Green's messages, it turns out he's missed out on a lot. He doesn't even know that she's staying at Daisy's place when he rings the doorbell and Leaf opens the door, eyes widening almost comically. Her hair is cut short like a boy's and her skin is tanned, but her voice is the same, loud and happy when she shrieks and jumps him like an overgrown child. He catches her and spins her around, though she is heavier than he remembers and definitely taller—she might be even taller than him.

When he finally lets her down she grabs a hold of his shoulders, like afraid he might disappear without the physical contact, and lets out a breath that's almost a laugh. "Oh… It's been ages! Where have you been?"

Pikachu chooses that moment to slip inside the house, where the mouse is instantly greeted by Leaf's Wigglytuff. Red watches the creatures poking at each other past Leaf's shoulder.

"Around," he says offhandedly, because he doesn't really want to talk about his travels after he and Leaf broke apart after Knot Island. "I heard you were in Unova."

What he really means, is that he didn't know Leaf was here, didn't know if she'd even want to meet him. He means that he's sorry for not trying to keep in touch with her, while she has been in Hoenn and Sinnoh and Unova and had a haircut and dated a bunch of guys, according to Green. He's sorry for having to rely on Green to know what she has been up to.

"Oh, well, I came back. The place was too busy for my tastes." Her eyes twinkle and she just gets it all, because she has always been good at reading him. Then after a hesitant pause she adds. "We have a lot to catch up on, y'know… I've been sending you messages through Green, but I doubt you got them all."

Daisy Oak pops into view from the kitchen and gasps in surprise once she notices Red. Leaf seems to grin at the older girl just a bit too widely and he wonders how much he truly has missed.

They end up having tea, because tea is all people ever have in Pallet, even if he knows that Leaf prefers coffee. She drinks it differently every time, wants to try all the different coffees in the world, but here in Pallet she drinks green tea with a dab of milk, just like everyone else. Red finds comfort in that, being used to not having the time to heat up food, much less drinks while traveling. Daisy's baking a rawstberry pie and it's kind of hot in the kitchen with the oven heated up. The girls are dressed far more lightly than him, so he guesses they don't find it a problem, but he can feel sweat prickling down his neck.

"Have you seen Green already?" Daisy asks when she finally manages to sit down around the table with them. "I heard he's been writing you letters, it's nice to know he's trying to make up for his stupidness… I really hope you can let go of the past, he was such a brat then and it's not at all who he is inside."

She looks hopeful. Red never really hated Green, even when the other boy seemed to hate him, so for him there's nothing to forgive. He knows that he should have, seeing as they used to be friends far before the other boy turned mean and started picking on him. Maybe he never really cared enough then, not for the boy's friendship nor his rivalry. He was grateful for Green for proving him a challenge as they both travelled across the region with their pokémon, but he tried to ignore him past the battles. He's not sure, but he thinks that the situation has changed, now.

"Haven't seen him yet," he says, and tries to look reassuring—he _is_ going to make the hike to Viridian in a few days. Daisy seems content enough with the response. Leaf brushes her hand against Daisy's and grins.

"You worry too much about him, honey," she says to the older. "He's a grown man already. I'm sure he can figure out how to make do with Red without your meddling."

Daisy looks sheepish. "I know, but I've been taking care of him for so long… If he turns out bad, it's like _I'm_ the parent responsible."

Leaf chuckles at her. "You'll have time to worry about your own kids, someday."

The girls are holding hands, Red notices, and smiling fondly and sitting just a bit too close to each other and Red realizes that his information source has _really_ given him the wrong idea on things. He smiles nonetheless, because Leaf seems happy and all he ever wanted was for her to be so.

They eat some pie and talk about the things that have happened in Pallet while Red has been missing. Red mostly listens as Daisy tells about this and that while Leaf throws a comment here and there. She doesn't know much about the town's business either, having spent so much time traveling abroad, but she seems to know all the people in question. Red's hopelessly fallen off the wagon—he didn't even know that Daisy now works as a physiotherapist for humans and pokémon alike.

Afterwards, when Leaf walks him to the garden she looks oddly old for being seventeen.

"I spent a lot of time in my life running away from myself," she confesses in the quiet of the night. "I made a lot of bad choices, you know, without you there as my silent judge."

He nods, because he understands, perfectly. He and Leaf were like a sister and a brother when they were younger, and in a way they still are like that. He looked out for Leaf, stopping her from doing some of the more stupid stunts she came up with and generally keeping her away from the bad crowds. Leaf on the other hand, forced him to go out into the world, dragged him along with her to the crowds and made sure he wasn't alone. When Leaf had decided to go to Hoenn, they hadn't fought because they just didn't, but neither had been very happy. They had still needed each other to get by, but had been forced apart.

"I had some flings with a lot of guys, trying to be young and free and live in the moment, but… It isn't really me," she whispers, voice dying out towards the end. "I love to travel, that wasn't it. It's just… I was so confused all the time, so lonely even with the people around me. I needed you, missed you and even Green so much. When I came back from Hoenn, it just clicked." Leaf makes a vague gesture towards the house behind them. "_We_ clicked, I mean."

She looks up and he meets her eyes, gaze full of approval because it's something she really needs.

"If you get trouble, send them to me."

She laughs, throws her head back and laughs like she used to as a kid when she was all battered up and bruised and Red would tell her to stop picking fights. Now he's telling her that she can go right ahead and pick as many fights as she wants to, because she doesn't have to change anything in herself for others. She has Red's permission and that's all she needs.

"Yeah," she manages through chuckles, "I'll do that."

iii.

The trip up the hill ends up being a fluke, because the gym leader isn't there. He's greeted by a visibly tiresome man at the door, who introduces himself as the head of the gym trainers, as well as the person in charge while the actual leader has skipped off, _again. _Red had no idea this was happening, but it doesn't surprise him much at all. In fact, it is kind of expected, isn't it, seeing as Green never wanted the job. He can imagine in striking accuracy the trouble of being tied to a post that seems more like a prison than a reward—he only barely missed that kind of confinement himself. So yes, he understands if Green feels like he needs to escape every once in a while, even if it _is _causing untimely gray hairs to his subordinates, or at least to one in particular.

"It's like he doesn't even care anymore," the man—or boy, because he seems to be Red's age and he is at a loss of what to call himself, too—whines, petting his Stanler with so much vigor that the antlered pokémon is getting agitated. "It used to be better yanno, few years ago when he was fresh outta the league. Back then we'd actually get things done, but now… not so much."

Red nods sympathetically, even if he doesn't really mean it. The man looks sour enough to put a lemon in shame. His Stanler lets out a frustrated cry and runs off, escaping the hands of its trainer, who doesn't seem to care much and keeps on talking with his surprisingly feminine voice. Red wonders if his voice change isn't over yet, or if he's permanently ended up with a voice like that. Not that it matters, but it's something to think about besides trying to find a polite way out of the conversation.

"I look after this gym, most of the time," the man goes on after a moment of silence, evidently calmer. "I've been thinkin' that I could start standin' in for him in the matches, too. It's only fair when I'm holdin' up this place with my hard work, right?"

Red blinks, surprised by the man's sudden unsure honesty. When he thinks about his words, it actually seems like the perfect solution—Green could turn in his post and make this trainer his successor, he seemed determined enough to take on the challenge with a grin. "That's sound like a good idea," he says in a way he hopes the man finds encouraging.

He doesn't exactly react the way Red had expected, instead flushing bright pink and averting his eyes. "Yeah well, it's against the league rules so I wouldn't count on that," he stutters a bit with his speech, trying so hard to be nonchalant that even Red, despite not having been around people for so long, can see that it's way over the top. Blushing and nervous, it's not only the man's voice that looks feminine and Red feels a trickle of doubt. "Sorry, I can't help you with the gym leader… I'll put you on the waitin' list, if that's anythin' to you."

"Oh, I don't want a challenge."

The man looks confused. "If you're not a challenger, than what are you hangin' in here for?"

"I'm…" He pauses, eyes flickering around the gym hall, where the man had let them in. Pikachu, previously poking at the floor around Red's feet, looks up. "I'm an old friend."

"A friend, huh?" The trainer seems to ponder about that for a second. "He doesn't have much of those, lately. Part of the reason why he gets so bored with the job, I figure. Maybe this is good."

He grins at Red and Red smiles back, just a bit.

"If ya wanna look for him, before he gets back, I suggest you ask his gramps in Pallet," the trainer says after a while, distractedly trying to coax his Stanler back into petting distance. "He said he was gonna pick up some stuff down there, but that was three weeks ago an' I haven't heard of him since."

Red nods, before realizing that the guy has turned his back on him and can't see it. "Thanks," he says instead.

The trainer beams at him over his shoulder. "No problem!"

Red's already starting to turn to leave, when he calls out. "Hey, uh, could you do me a favor?" Red turns back, waiting for the once more nervous man to go on. "If ya find him, could you let me know?" He begins to dig up something from his pockets. "I… I'll write you my number."

He manages to find a small note and a pencil, scribbling down the number and handing it to Red, who takes it with a nod of acknowledgement.

"If he comes back, I'll be sure to let him know you visited," the man grins before realizing something with a laugh. "Sorry, sorry… what's your name?"

Red starts to walk away, a small wrist movement signaling to Pikachu that they are leaving. "Red," he calls back, but doesn't turn. He doesn't want to face the look of sheer surprise and disbelief that the trainer is undoubtedly sporting. Only outside he takes a look at the note he received.

_**Arabella 0256771, call if ya wanna talk (or hear me talk)**_

Arabella is a girl's name. He stops walking and stares ahead. Pikachu nudges his thigh and he wonders if he's too stuck up in his own world to see the truth.

iv.

Professor Oak is a lot smaller and slightly less energetic than he was in Red's memories. Still, the pokémon researcher greets him with the same studious eyes and the same warm smile and Red feels like he's eleven again. He can feel worry nagging inside as they drink tea the Pallet way and the professor seems even more forgetful than he used to be, but at the same time he's both relieved and amazed that the man is still doing his job even when he's well into his seventies.

There's not much the professor can say for sure about Green's whereabouts, other than that the gym leader had really been in Pallet a few weeks ago to get some gear for his "project". Red doesn't know what that means and Mr. Oak doesn't seem to be willing to elaborate, so he settles with that. Right after Red has thanked him for the tea and is about to leave the professor remembers that his grandson had mentioned something about Cinnabar.

Red goes home, only to tell his mother that he's leaving again the next day to Cinnabar. Delia shakes her head, but puts on a tired smile. She's content now that she knows where he's going to be whenever.

Before he leaves the next day he visits Daisy and Leaf again, just to ask the younger if she knows anything about Green's social life. Arabella's comment about the gym leader lacking friends had stuck with him, because he cannot imagine it. A Green with no people around him—even the thought feels strange to Red, who's used to his rival being the center of attention wherever he goes. He always was popular as a kid and just had that personality that drew people in, made people want to be around him.

Leaf laughs, when he asks about it.

"They got tired of his bullshit, I guess," she says, a hint of something more serious and genuine in her eyes. "Sure he used to be popular, but it was because he had the air of a winner. I think he just dropped the pretense and the people left."

Red feels weird—actually he doesn't know what he feels or what he's supposed to feel and it must show, because Leaf smiles at him and snatches his cap off to ruffle his hair.

"Don't worry 'bout it, they weren't true friends like us." She laughs at the face he makes. "We haven't abandoned him even if he's a jerk, right?"

He doesn't answer, because he doesn't want to say that they kind of have, even if it's not their fault.

After the conversation he gets onto Charizard and flies south, towards the volcanic island that's still blowing out smoke, even if it's been at least a year since the accident. He heard about it when he was traveling, he even saw the island from Charizard's back right after the disaster, when it was still half molten lava and smoke and mist rising up from the surrounding ocean. This time it's different, the sensation of seeing the rock that has formed the island anew into a different shape than the one he remembers, is breathtaking.

They're rebuilding on the island. Families that have lived there for generations are returning to the only place they can call home, even when they know just how unpredictable the island can be. Red lands in front of the pokémon center, where a bunch of colorfully dressed trainers are gathered laughing and talking animatedly amongst themselves. Cinnabar is still a stop in the gym challenge, with Blaine's new gym just rock's throw away. Life goes on after all.

He finds Green by the shore. He's standing in the shallow water, pant legs rolled up and Eevee perched atop his head, staring ahead into the distance. Red sits down on the beach, letting Pikachu hop down from his shoulder and run towards the waterline, only to jump back to avoid a wave. He watches the mouse play and listens to the ocean in peace. He isn't all that surprised when Green starts talking after a moment, never having turned around and still knowing exactly who was behind him.

"Life's fickle, y'know," he says, and Eevee yawns, apparently woken up by his voice. "One moment you can have it all and the next it'll be long gone. There's nothing you can do 'bout it, except try to keep hangin' to the threads."

The small fox pokémon notices Pikachu in the water and lets out a pleased cry, hopping down to the water via Green's back. He turns around and grins to Red just this side of overconfident. Red smiles back.

"So, how's it goin' then? Same as ever?" Green asks, trotting back to shore and slumping down next to his friend. "Me? I'm _peachy_."

Red hums and feels the sense of familiarity flood into him like oxygen into his lungs. It was always like this—they may fight and bicker and be at each other's throats, but in the end it's always going to be so _comfortable_ between them. Green can talk enough for both of them and Red can silence the man without saying a word.

"Heard you got beaten," Green offers conversationally, throwing a pebble into the waves.

"No you didn't," Red says, watching the ripples in the water. Green chuckles.

"Yeah," he mutters, "but you _did_."

They watch the pokémon play together and fall into a silence that's comforting, somehow. Red's the one to break it, after a long while.

"You patched things up with the professor."

It's not a question, because he already knows he has. He's seen it with his own eyes.

"I did, didn't I?" Green says offhandedly, still staring into the distance. Red feels slightly annoyed.

"Then why are you still pretending?" he asks, voice as low and even as ever, but knowing that Green can hear the demanding tone in it.

The man smirks. "Haven't guessed yet?" Red's brows burrow slightly and Green finds it funny for some reason, barking out a laugh so typical of him. "I was waiting for you, you idiot! So we could go together. Since I had that battle three weeks ago, I've even made all the precautions… well, all except telling Bells that she can have the damned gym, when she likes it so much."

Red forgets to feel surprised and feels deeply content instead, knowing that the woman will be more than happy to know that. Then he remembers and looks dumbly at Green, who loses it again and laughs like there's no tomorrow. The playing pokémon pause and look up, worried about the hysteric trainer.

"Leaf's had so many adventures on her own," Green continues once he manages to calm down. "She's kept on telling about all these places, the Coronet mountain range, Unova's cities, the Beaches in Lilycove… I wanna see that for myself. I wanna see that all and find something real out there, something that I want to do."

He looks eager, but at the same time nervous. He clears his voice and averts his eyes, before glancing up again, like he can't help it. "I promised you, yeah? When we were kids, I promised we'd go out there together, but when the time was right, I let you down."

Red remembered that promise by the swings, even though he'd buried it someplace deep where it couldn't burn him. All this time when he's felt indifferent to Green's mean words he's been suppressing the feeling of being betrayed all those years ago.

"Now I'm gonna try it again," Green says, quiet and so very earnest. "I wanna see the world, with you, even if you're kind of a dork and really dense and I can't stand you sometimes… because you're my best friend."

He grins and Red has to look away, because his throat feels far too tight and he doesn't want to be called a crybaby, not anymore. Green places a hand on his shoulder, warm and welcoming.

"Are you with me?"

Red looks ahead at the ocean and Pikachu and Eevee and the sky that's open for them both.

He smiles.

"Sure."

v.

They leave for Hoenn on a ferry the next week. This time, Red says goodbyes to his mother, leaving his other pokémons in her care. Pikachu refuses to stay behind, and honestly, Red doesn't want to leave the mouse either. His mother tells him that it's alright for him to go as long as he's coming back someday. He promises that he will.

Leaf and Daisy come to the harbor to see them off. Green snaps at his sister for treating him like a baby when she tries to give him advice for the journey and Leaf laughs. She tells them about the best spots to visit, the best places to eat and sleep and threatens to strangle them if they don't take care of each other and send her postcards. Neither Red nor Green wants to see if she would go through with her threats and so they vow to remember the cards, even if proves to be challenging.

When they're at open sea, Green tells Red about how the conversation with Arabella went and Red ends up laughing, because really, he can imagine the situation so well. He has saved the new gym leader's number to his pokégear and from the ferry he sends her a message to congratulate her. The reply he receives is enough to make him feel happy for days.

The ocean breeze is cool on the ferry's deck, smelling of salt and seaweed and faintly of smoke. Red can pick out the scent of something else too, something different. It's a scent that makes shivers run down his spine and fills him with nervous energy.

It's the scent of new hope.

Besides him Green grins, throwing an arm around his shoulders and proclaiming that he's going to be the king of Hoenn as soon as they get there as well as other nonsense that makes Red laugh some more.

Truly, he's never felt freer.

**End**

**AN:** I didn't have the slightest idea on where to go with this when I began and it kind of shows, but… it was an experiment. A story without any real story to be told. I can only hope it's at least somewhat enjoyable as a fic.

**About the first part:** In my country children get free dental care, but it stops being free once you turn 18. They send you letters home with your reserved times and it's really hard to get appointments at other times. That's why Mrs. Blanche tells Red that he's lucky to have an appointment without any notice right before his 18th birthday.

**About Arabella: **In HG/SS there's a male ace trainer called Arabella at Viridian gym, who has a Stanler and a Tauros. Arabella is not a unisex name, so I thought that maybe it's actually a _girl_, who's dressing up as a boy.


End file.
